


Man of Her Dreams

by Jaydee_Faire



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Daydreaming, F/M, Gen, I dunno what else to tag this, Laundry, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-20
Updated: 2018-05-20
Packaged: 2019-05-09 10:03:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 674
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14713991
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jaydee_Faire/pseuds/Jaydee_Faire
Summary: Paya daydreams about her future.





	Man of Her Dreams

Master Link often returned to Kakariko, sometimes to help out some of the townspeople or trade for supplies, and sometimes to indulge in luxuries that were rare on the road, like a hot bath. Paya was well used to heating water for the herbal baths Impa soaked in to treat her rheumatism, and when she'd mentioned that she wouldn't mind heating a tub for Link, his eyes had lit up and his smile had made her go weak in the knees. 

So now he came once a week. He'd offered to pay her for her trouble, and when she'd refused, red-faced, he'd given her a gift of wildberry jam, carried all the way from the Hebra mountains. The jar sat on a shelf in her room and once in a while, late at night, she'd steal a taste on the tip of her finger and think about his strong, graceful hands.

Paya had been taught not to let anything go to waste, so while Master Link was bathing she'd heat an extra kettle of water on the fire and use it to wash the dirt and road dust out of his clothes. It was there, sitting by the fire, surrounded by the smell of steam and the heady scent of a man on the clothes laying in a pile beside her, that Paya let her mind wander.

It would all start so innocently. 

Perhaps he'd emerge from his bath wearing only a towel, steam rising off of his skin, water dripping down his toned body, and thank her for all her help. Then, he'd compliment her on how well she'd washed his clothes and say something like, "If only I had a wife that were as helpful and lovely as you." 

The thought made her face grow warm, a heat that spread down to her shoulders and kept right on going. 

And the next time he came to see her, he wouldn't just offer her fruit or sweets from Akkala, oh no. He'd bring back gorgeous ruby earrings from Gerudo Town, where he was the only man allowed in because of how noble and heroic he was. Rubies complimented her pretty face, he'd say. And then he'd take her hand and pull her close to whisper that perhaps one day he'd bring her a diamond. And she'd respond in a steady, clear voice: "Oh, Link! You're going to make all the other girls jealous!"

"I don't want any other girl," he'd murmur. "I want you to show me where your birthmark is."

Then he'd lean down and...

Someone cleared their throat; Paya startled and dropped the bar of soap she'd been using into the cloudy water. She'd been kneeling by the laundry tub, staring off into nothing. She looked up into Master Link's handsome face. He was wearing rather more than just a towel, but he looked just as beautiful in a blue tunic and plain canvas trousers as he did in everything else. She plunged her hands into the water to find the soap and wished she could plunge her face into it, too: she was absolutely sure that anyone could tell from her expression how loud the wedding bells in her head had been ringing.

"I, u-um!" Paya picked up the bar of soap and the garment she'd been scrubbing. "They're n-n-not done yet, but I'll make sure they get back to you. If you'd like to stay the night--" she swallowed, too aware that all his attention was on her. "--At the inn, i-in the morning I..."

Link nodded. Paya offered a small smile, and the one she received back was more precious than ruby earrings from Gerudo Town. She watched him walk off, shrugging his heavy bag onto his shoulder and heading down toward the inn. Paya let out a breath, letting the rest of the world come into focus again.

Someday. Someday it would start innocently, and end with her in the white dress Impa had been saving for her. 

Tonight was going to be a wildberry jam night.

**Author's Note:**

> I sympathize with Paya. I've got a stutter too, and am also in love with a hundred-year-old legendary hero who's in a relationship with a princess.
> 
> Visit me on tumblr @cyberphuck!


End file.
